Improvement in railway-rail joints



UNITED STATES.

PATENT QFFICE.

CHARLES EASTON SPOONER, OF BRON-Y-GARTH, PQRTMADOG, ANDGEORGE AUGUSTUS HUDDART, OF BRYNKIR, WALES.

IMPROVEMENT IN RA'lLWAY-RAIL JOINTS.

Specification formingpart of Letters Patent-No. [02,329, dated April 26, 1870.

To all whom it may concern.-

- Be it known that we. CHARLES EASTON SBOONER, of Bron-y-Garth, Portinadoc, and GEORGE AUGUSTUS HUnDA-RT, of Brynkir, both in the county of (Jarnarvon, \Vales, have invented a new and useful Improvement in the Mode of Strengthening the Joints of the Rails of Railways; and we do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enable others skilled in the art to make and use the same,

reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in the mode of strengthening the j oints of the rails of railway s.

In the accompanying drawings we have shown our improved mode ofjointing rails as applied both to double-headed rails and to or flat-base rails. The abutting ends of therails, whether they be double-headed or formed with a flat base, we propose to clip between two plates,suitably shaped to embrace the web and the foot or lower head of the rail, and of such depth that when applied they will extend vertically to a sufficient distance below the rail to form a girder or stifi rib, and admit of being secured by spring-clamps, as will be presently explained.

Figure 1 shows in side elevation our improvements as applied to the joining of flatbase rails, and Fig. 2 an end elevation of the same.

A A are the abutting ends'of two rails fitted to chairs B, which are spiked to transverse sleepers C O, as usual.

D D are plates shaped so as to embrace the abutting ends of the rails and tomeet below the rail, and form a supporting-rib beneath the rails sufficiently strong to counteract the vertical strainput on the rails by passing trains. These plates D are secured, like ordinary fishplates, to the rails by passing bolts E through them and through the web of the rails. Below the base of the rails the plates are held toget-her by spring-clips 4 F, which are slid into position over the bot om ends of the plates. This mode of holding the plates will permit of the free contract-ion and-expansion of the rails within the plates, due to the changes of temperature to which {they are exposed. The

'their'shifling. In this )lates DD it will be seen at Fi 2, are conn- 1 a a tersunk to receive the spying-clips and prevent figure it will also be seen that the plates-are connected together below the rails by 1 forming a rabbeted rib or flange on one plate, under which the chalnfered edgeof the adjoinin plate is inserted, and

thus an interlocking connection is formed.

Fig. 3 shows a double-headed rail, A,

clamped by a pair ot" plates, D D, of like construction to those shown at Fig.2. The plate D is made deeper than the plate D, to the extent of a rib or flauge, d, which is intended to form abearing for the bottom edge of the plate D. The way of pu'tting'together our couplingplates is indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 2. Thus, the plate D having. been brought into position so as to lap over the point of the abutting ends of the rails, the foot of the plate D is to be placed on the under rib or flange, d, and the plateis to be moved upinto position to grip the base of the rails. Screw-bolts being then inserted in corresponding holes in the plates and webs 'of the rails and tightened up, a firm and strong joint will be formed, the lower ends of the plates being securely locked together. This mode of connecting the plates together below the" base of the rails may be used in some cases without the spring-clips; but the combination of the two will in general be preferred.

Fig. 4 shows a slight modification, in which the form of some of the contact parts of the railand plates is somewhat changed. To give increased support to the rail, we prefer to roll or form the plates with square or nearly square shoulders, as shown at d d, which shoulders are intended to bear against corresponding shoulders formed under the heads of the rails in place of the ordinary curved abutting surfaces, which are liable to apt like wedges under the pressure of a passing'train, and thus tend to thrust open the gripping-plates and loosen the joint. To prevent the loosening of the very liable, owing to the vibration caused by the passing traffic. we propose in some cases to avoid the use of nuts, and t0 fit the screwbolts into talpped holes in one oft-he side plates, and to prevent the bolts from turning by-drilling a hole transversely through the heads of .the' bolts and inserting, therein a rod extending rom one bolt-head to the other. This arramgexnent is shown in the side elevation, Fig. -1-, and in end elevation at Fig. 2.

The rod H We form with a head, and its opposite end we pierce to receire 2t pin or key, which will serve to' retain it in place.

Having thus described our invention, we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent Thecombination' of plates D D d d with spring-clips F and pins or screws G, arranged as and for the purpose set forth.

In witness wh ereot' we have hereunto set our hands and seals this 11th day of November, Q

c. E. S'POONER. [L s.] GEO. A. HUDDART. 1 s] Witnesses:

' FRED.- WALKDE-N,

66 Chancery Lane, London. W. W.. WYNN,

24 Royal Exchafige, London. 

